Going Home

Share This Page:

For years, Sandip Roy watched Indians migrate to the Silicon Valley area of California, where he was living and working as an electrical engineer. After switching to journalism as a career, he decided to report on the reverse-migration of Indians back to their native land. He found many were doing so in search of high-tech jobs, family and a booming economy. The repatriation process may grow. One observer predicted, "the trickle is going to become a flood."

Roy is an editor with New America Media and host of its radio show UpFront on KALW 91.7 FM. He is a commentator on NPR’s Morning Edition and writes regularly for ethnic and mainstream media publications such as the San Francisco Chronicle, California Magazine, India Currents, India Abroad, and others.

Stories:

A Rising Tide is Heading Back Home to India

Sachin Maheshwari has the American dream in his grasp. A job at a venture capital firm. An MBA from Wharton. A resume filled with name-brand companies. And now this immigrant from India is moving back to his homeland. Read more

Going Home

NRIs are trading in their non-resident status for a chance at the new Indian dream. But can they compete in the booming India of the 21st century? Read more

India a Cultural Shock for Bay Area Returnees

Vikas Saxena had spent seven years abroad before he decided to move back to India from San Francisco. "I had this illusion that there'd be some premium attached to me because I was U.S.-returned," said Saxena, sitting in one of the trendy coffee bars that dot Bangalore. "But everyone was U.S.-returned. Bummer." Read more

India's Unlikely New Immigrants

Even before the recession hit the US many Indians were thinking about returning to India. The Indian GDP grew 9% in 2007. 4 out of 5 Fortune 500 companies now have some presence in India. But more than jobs and rising salaries, it’s family that’s pulling Indians back according to a recent survey by Vivek Wadhwa of Duke University and Harvard Law School. Read more

The American Dream Moves to India I came to the United States, like many other Indians, to become a software engineer. For 10 years, I worked in Silicon Valley watching waves of Indians moving in. I saw Indian restaurants and grocery stores pop up in strip malls in Sunnyvale and Fremont. By the time I left software programming to move into journalism, the tide was starting to ebb. Read more and view the slideshow

Inside Out: From California to India

For decades, India has been struggling with "brain drain," as some of its best and brightest have left to set up lives in the West. Many of them have come to California. A UC Berkeley study found one-third of the engineers in Silicon Valley are of Indian descent. But now, with the US economy in recession and green card lines backlogged, many Indians are thinking seriously about going back to India. KALW's Sandip Roy profiled one couple who have decided to take that step. Listen to the story

Sandip Roy on Shifting Tide of Indian Migration

I came to the United States, as did many other Indians, to become a software engineer. For 10 years I worked in Silicon Valley watching waves of Indians moving in. I saw Indian restaurants and grocery stores pop up in strip malls in Sunnyvale and Fremont. By the time I left software programming to move into journalism, the tide was starting to ebb. Read more

The Return of the Homemakers

“Family considerations are amongst the strongest magnets pulling immigrants back to their home country,” says researcher Vivek Wadhwa. But sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for. It’s one thing to go home for vacation. It’s another thing to live with your family. Though few will admit it, many botched returns come from not being able to, as Indians put it quaintly, “adjust to family.” Read more

Welcome to the Bubble

The biggest shock for returning NRIs isn’t the garbage, or the mosquitoes, or the traffic. It’s the realization that you can’t just plug back into your old life. It’s tough to build social networks when you are no longer a college student. “Delhi’s social circles are clique-ish” says Raju Narisetti, editor of The Mint. “It’s about who you know. And you can be an outsider forever.” Read more